The Student spoke to Ian Murray, Labour Member of Parliament (MP) for Edinburgh South, on topics ranging from the upcoming general elections, Peter Mathieson, Gaza and the housing crisis.
Murray is running for re-election in the upcoming elections, which must be held before January 2025.
He is an alumni of the University of Edinburgh where he joined the Labour society, and opened two pubs before he “fell into politics.”
When asked about the recent polls, which have suggested a Labour win in the upcoming elections, he stated:
“The polls only give you a snapshot of what’s here today, it doesn’t predict what’s going to happen.”
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While he added he was “pleased” at the progress made by the Labour party, he also mentioned that the party was coming back “from a very, very low base.”
He referred to the 2019 general elections as being “dreadful”, as Labour lost 60 seats in the House of Commons.
According to Murray, Labour has changed as a party, as it has turned into a party which is a “credible government”, specifically as he stated that the public is seeing that “the Conservative party and the SNP [Scottish National Party] are not fit to govern.”
Murray then touched on the University of Edinburgh management, saying that the university has a “responsibility” to do something about the housing crisis and the cost of living crisis.
However, he added that universities in Scotland are underfunded and therefore need “international students to plug the gap.”
Murray stated that all these issues had led to “a cocktail of disaster for students,” mentioning that while there is free tuition for Scottish students at Scottish universities, there are not enough courses. Murray drew the comparison of “having free bus passes without a bus.”
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Murray has collaborated with Students for Action on Homelessness (SLURP) on issues of housing crisis in recent years, saying that he has heard “horror stories from students trying to get accommodation.”
He said the “housing battle in the city” is partially due to Edinburgh private accommodations which charge “extortionate fees”, adding that the university should build more accommodation for students to solve this issue.
Responding to a question from SNP MP Tommy Sheppard about his opinion of a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, Murray stated:
“A ceasefire is easy to say but not easy to deliver.”
He said he was on the “Pro-Palestinian case”, having visited Gaza in the past and being vocal at Pro-Palestinian protests. As he also mentioned that “to have a two state solution, you need to have two states.”
He spoke about independence saying it would be “a disaster for Scotland and for the UK [United Kingdom],” comparing it to Brexit as “removing from a union isn’t easy.”
When questioned what his favourite cocktail is, he said a glass of “French wine” is what he would drink after a long day walking around the constituency.
Top: “File:Official portrait of Ian Murray crop 1.jpg” by Chris McAndrew is licensed under CC BY 3.0 Bottom: Image via Lucy Frewin